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THE
BLUEGRASS PATRIOTS – Springtime in the Rockies
Review by Joe Ross, Roseburg, Oregon - email rossjoe@hotmail.com
Hailing from Fort Collins, Colorado, the Bluegrass Patriots formed in
1979.
They were in the national bluegrass spotlight with a 1987 feature story
in
Bluegrass Unlimited magazine and 1991 recording of “When You and
I Were
Young, Maggie” which appeared in BU’s National Bluegrass
Survey for several
months. Their recording portfolio includes five previous projects, but
the
last one was in 1997. A sad event occurred in 2002 with the passing of
longtime Patriot and dobroplayer Rick Bradstreet. Dan Mitchell now fiddles
with the group that also includes Glenn Zankey (guitar), Danny Rogers
(bass), Ken Seaman (banjo), and Willie McDonald (mandolin). All are superior
instrumentalists in the bluegrass idiom, and the main vocalists in the
group
now have decades of experience singing together. While some of their
lead
singers are stronger than others, they believe in sharing the spotlight
and
letting each be featured. A recording contract with Copper Creek Records
is
now yet another significant milestone for them.
The Bluegrass Patriots have chosen a superb combination
of locomotive and
lyrical songs to record.
They’re a well-rounded and versatile group that draws from a variety
of
sources. Like earlier successes for them, they tap American folk music
for
“Down in the Valley” and “Why Do You Weep Dear Willow?” The
former is given
a treatment that features various key changes and five different vocal
trio
arrangements. They also pull from traditional bluegrass (The Girl I Left
in
Sunny Tennessee), classic country (Streets of Baltimore), Western
(Springtime in the Rockies, Trail of the Lonesome Pine), and 1930s Gospel
(Eat at the Welcome Table, Just as I Am/Country Boy).
While Joe Val already
recorded it, an interesting rendition of “Sparklin’
Brown Eyes” features a duet with Willie’s lead to Glenn’s
tenor and
yodeling. A reworked Carter Family melody, “Winding Stream,” is
a pleasure
to hear. Another song that yields bountiful reward for the Patriots is
the
album’s closer, “Paul Bunyan Love,” which comes from
the repertoire of The
Maddox Brothers and Rose. The eerie instrumental “Indian Council” is
played in a minor key and comes from Midwestern fiddler Bobby Puckett. “Free
Me from My Misery” is an original written by Willie McDonald is
a tale of
tossing and turning in loneliness.
For a quarter century, these Patriots have remained
loyal to bluegrass music. At the same time, they’re also not afraid
to push the envelope a bit
with polished material that defines their eclectic broadly-appealing
sound.
Instead of simply being a longtime group that lives in the past, they
continue to grow and present an innovative approach that will please
their
many fans as well as win them many new ones. Let’s hope that we
won’t have
to wait seven more years before their next album release. (Joe Ross)
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